From platform nine and three quarters
by Hermione Evans
Summary: We all know the bit when Albus goes off to Hogwarts at the end of the 7th book, but what happens next? Join Albus, Rose and James as they rush to save the world in the new Potter adventure.
1. Chapter 1-The Hogwarts express

Chapter 1: The Hogwarts express

Albus stared out the window as his parents and the platform rapidly disappeared into the fog. When it finally flew out of sight, he opened up his muggle backpack and took out his wand. He had purchased it yesterday at Ollivander's. Nearly ten inches, made out of willow and unicorn hair and with a crisscross pattern on the wood that made his eyes blur when he looked at it for too long, this had been one of the first wands Albus picked up. He remembered that feeling of warmth in his fingers, and the sensation that he and his wand were one united force that could, combined, do anything. He felt that warmth seep through his body on the nippy autumnal morning.

He looked around him. He was on a carriage of the Hogwarts Express, and going off to his first term at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, the best place (and probably only, thought Albus. He had never really thought about it before) in the country to learn the magical arts like both his parents had done, and their parents before them. He was excited to be off at last, naturally, but he was a bit nervous to leave his parents and sister, all of whom he loved dearly. "Don't worry," he remembered Teddy, his dad's godson, joking last night when he expressed his fears at dinner. "You miss them for one week, then you forget all about them." He remembered his mother answering this with a playful shove.

In the cosy train carriage there were two other people: his cousin, Rose, and his brother, James. Rose, who was in the same year as Albus, was desperately trying to catch one last glimpse of her parents. James, who had been looking at his ancient spider called Henry, and poking him with his wand tip (Henry was now flashing a multitude of bright colours), looked up.

"Forget it, Rose. That's the last you'll see of them until Christmas."

Albus snorted derisively. "Always the caring one, James," he said, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

"Sarcasm heard, identified and acted upon, little bro," grinned James, turning back to Henry.

"Oh, stop twittering, you two," Rose snapped. The boys were instantly silent. Quiet and studious, Rose wasn't much of a talker, so when she did speak, everyone took action at once. Also, she had an over-powering sense of girl power that you just couldn't fail to notice. Despite the rest of the family being, so far in Gryffindor (One of Hogwarts' four houses), everyone was sure that Rose would be in Ravenclaw (Which, as James put it, was the "house for swots").

The three of them sat in an awkward silence (not including Henry, who was now squealing like a whistle). Finally, Rose looked at Albus, and asked Albus, "May I practice some spells on you?"

"Um, yeah, sure, just tell me what to do," said Albus.

"Thanks. Ok, first put that pencil in your pocket on the table." Albus did as he was told, glad for the distraction from the feeling that someone was Transfiguring his stomach into a muggle washing machine. "Ok, good," she said, pulling out her wand. Albus had never seen it before. It really was beautiful, with miniature roses made out of wood and small, blunt wooden thorns adorning its side. Then she cried, with clear diction, "Wingardium Leviosa!" The pencil rotated itself and begun to rise, point up, towards the ceiling, but went a little too far, and ended up making a dent and a mark. Rose hastily rotated the pencil until the rubber end was facing up, and moved it up and down to erase the mark. The pencil dropped with a clatter to the table. "Reparo," she muttered. The hole resealed itself. "A little more practice," Rose muttered, blushing.

Albus, however, was astonished. "Rose, is that your first time doing magic?"

Rose blushed even more furiously. "Like I said, it needs practice."

"Rose, that was amazing!"

"Thanks! Now you try. Maybe… Expelliamus? Your dad was good at that one."

"Ok." He pulled out his wand and pointed it at Rose, who was holding hers aloft. "Expelliamus!" Albus cried, and, much to the surprise of both of them, Rose's wand flew out of her hand and hit Crookshanks, her dozy cat, on the nose.

"I swear that cat's immortal," Albus complained after receiving a vicious scratch down his arm from Crookshanks. "Hasn't he been around since your mum's days?

"Crookshanks is half-kneazle," Rose said, surprised. "Kneazles can live for up to one hundred years and-"

"Ok, Ok, I get it!" Albus interrupted.

"Ok, fine. That was an impressive bit of magic you did there."

"I know." Albus felt confused. "I never expected to be able to do it."

Suddenly the doors to the carriage slid open, and a dreamy voice floated in. "_You're _Harry Potter's son." Albus looked in surprise at the person who was standing in the doorway. She was obviously the trolley lady, but was not the aging witch that James had described in the car. In fact, she was reasonably young, with pale blonde hair and baby blue eyes. "And are you Luna Lovegood?"

"Uh-huh." She cocked her head and looked at him. "The last time I saw you was at your parents wedding. They had to go for some photos so I took you to get your nappy change." She looked up thoughtfully. "You peed on me." Albus blushed furiously then glanced menacingly at James and Rose, both of whom were having ferocious coughing fits to hide their laughter. "This isn't my main job, you know. I'm actually a famous zoologist." Albus remembered his parents marvelling at her name being on his booklist. "I do know them, but I'm having a mad moment, and could you remind me of your names?"

"I'm Albus, that's my brother, James, and that's my cousin, Rose, who's Ron's daughter."

"Oh, of _course._ I am sorry."

"That's Ok. Did you know that my sister was named after you?"

"Lily Luna, yes. Well, I won't stay and bore you three for too long, but I'm not the only familiar face you'll find at Hogwarts. I'm sure you've heard that Professor Longbottom now teaches Herbology, and I'm sure you'll find that there are a few other names you'll know." She went away mysteriously, leaving them each a chocolate frog.

"Before anyone mentions it, that was _not_ funny." The others collapsed into laughter.

As they tucked into their chocolate frogs, Rose asked, "What was that about familiar faces, by the way? I mean, I knew about Professor Longbottom, obviously, but who else is at Hogwarts that we know? Teachers, I mean."

"I don't know. I was just thinking about that. Madam Hooch has just retired, so maybe we know the replacement? I'm not sure. I'm trying to think back to dad's old Quidditch stories," said James thoughtfully. "Hey, I got Agrippa," he said, showing them the card. "Here, you can have it, I have six of them." Albus sighed. James was always quoting his father's stories.

Albus looked over Rose's shoulder. "Hey, you got dad! Let's read, then," he said, snatching the card off Rose before she could reply. As it happened, she just muttered "Boys," and turned her attention back to making Albus' pencil float.

"'Renowned for his title as the boy who lived, Harry Potter saved the wizarding world from near disaster. Bearing a lightning scar from the time Tom Riddle attempted to kill him, he played a large role in ending both the first and second wizarding wars.' Cool!"

Albus looked at his own card. It was the card that had actually been his father's first; Albus Dumbledore, after whom he was named. Dumbledore had been Headmaster of Hogwarts in his parents' day

The rest of the journey passed quietly. As the shadows cast by the autumnally gold trees began to lengthen, all three of them changed into their Hogwarts robes and kept an eye out for Hogsmeade station. But, as the hours passed, Albus grew dozy. When they arrived at Hogsmeade station, Albus, without even realising it, had fallen asleep.

Rose woke him by shaking him gently. "James wanted to leave you," she said, "but I decided it would be best if you didn't miss the sorting ceremony."

The two first years dragged their luggage off the train and dumped it on a pile with everyone else's and began to search for Hagrid. This only took seconds, even in the dark, as Hagrid positively towered over the students.

"'Ello, you two. Albus, isn't it, and Rose?" Albus nodded cheerfully, but Rose, clearly overwhelmed by this gentle giant of a man, said nothing, looking at Professor Hagrid's giant belly. Albus trod on her toe. She nodded, still transfixed by his massive form. They selected a boat into which all three of them climbed.

"So, um, got any pets?" asked Hagrid once the boats had started to move.

"Nope. I _did_ have a pet rat, but _someone_ 's manky old cat ate him on the same night I got him," Albus growled, looking pointedly at Rose.

Rose immediately became defensive. "Well, you can stop being like that, we've trained Crookshanks to catch mice, she probably thought that Nimbus was just another big one-"  
"That beast chased him right out of the Leaky Cauldron and all the way down Diagonally, and you can stop talking about _it_ as if it were all cute and fluffy because it's _not,_ and I have the scratch mark to prove it-"

"Oh, stop bickering you two. You sound so much like Ron and 'Ermione." He smiled. "I remember when they had an argument almost exactly the same as the one you just had. I don't think in my wildest dreams I would have thought that they would get married." Rose curled herself around Crookshanks, blinked awkwardly and scowled at Albus, who promptly turned away and made it clear that he wouldn't be the one to break first, and admit that they were wrong.

They fell silent and listened to the gentle splash, splash, splash of the waves against the side of the boat. It took Albus a couple of seconds to realise that everyone else had gone quiet too. "Wow," Rose whispered. But then he saw it.

Lit up spectacularly before them was Hogwarts castle itself. Even at the distance they were from it, Albus fancied he could already hear the buzz of hundreds of voices catching up on each other's summer holidays. He only stopped looking when a large stone cavern blocked it from view.

The first years all climbed out of their boats, one by one. Albus and Rose had to get out first as Hagrid's size threatened to capsize them in the freezing water. They all climbed up the slippery stone steps, clinging tightly to the handrail which consisted of little more than an old piece of frayed rope.

When they reached the massive mahogany front doors, Hagrid told Albus and Rose that he had to go and take his place at the staff table and asked them to knock on the door, to which they agreed. Hagrid ran off to the other side of the castle, assumingly to go in the back way. Albus tried to reach up to the large brass knocker but Rose pushed him aside, muttering something about him being "on the brink" of falling down the polished marble steps. Pulling up her robe sleeves, she took out her wand (Dragon heartstring, twelve and a half inches) and, with a neat flick, muttered, "Wingardium Leviosa!" The knocker rapped twice on the door. This was greeted by a general round of applause from the class (except for Albus, who really had been nearly falling over and was still on the floor, bruised and embarrassed). Rose blushed as the towering doors opened and they stepped into the warmth.


	2. Chapter 2- The hat and the Hospital wing

Once they were all inside, they had a chance to look at the witch who had let them in. She had quite unusual appearance. Tall and thin, she had the appearance of a regular person stretched upwards like a kind of rubber band. Her sleek, grey hair was in a very tight bun which looked as if it were dragging her hair out of her scalp. She stooped slightly in her old age, and supported the weight she was unable to support on a cane with a decorative Egyptian-style cat on top.

"Follow me." Albus had half expected her voice to be croak, but it was crisp and sharp like a cold winter morning. She led them down countless passages lit with flaming torches, and Albus could see countless more passages branching off. He felt another fear crop up- what if he went down a deserted corridor and couldn't find his way back? What if he starved and-

He brushed these fears to the back of his mind and concentrated on at least learning the route this old woman was taking them. Left, right, straight ahead, tickle the door, right, right again… She led them into a dark room. Once she had lit a lamp, it was obvious that this was a classroom. There were still notes on the blackboard from last summer. The old woman went and sat at the front and the first formers watched her quietly. She blinked at them. "Well? Sit down!" Albus plonked himself gratefully on a double desk with a solid centimetre of dust on top. Rose shyly sat down next to him, and they smiled in mutual recognition that they were friends again. Rose's head flopped onto his shoulder. Albus grinned. It was nearly nine o'clock and Rose was tired at any hour after seven. Suddenly the woman who had let them in began to speak.

"I am Professor McGonagall, Headmistress of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. In a moment you will be sorted or separated into four houses that are named after the founders of this school. They were named Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, Gryffindor and Slytherin. Your triumphs will earn you house points, but any playing the truant will get them deducted.

"As of last year, as some of you may know, we have introduced a Head boy and girl of each year. They will remain in this position unless they commit a serious offence. However, as first years, we need to get to know each of you first to make the decision fair, so this position will be awarded halfway through the year. I might as well add that the people selected for this role will go on to be prefects in their fifth year, and almost certainly Head boy and girl of the school in their last."

Albus didn't get too worked up at this prospect, but he could see a few smug faces which obviously thought that they had got it in the bag. Even Rose looked excited.

Professor McGonagall then exited the room and motioned for them to follow. She led them straight across to a large pair of oak doors (they were massive at about ten foot, but Hagrid would still have struggled getting through them). With a great heave they swung open. The deafening chatter ceased, and everyone already in the hall stared at them, but no-one was looking at the people.

Most of them had heard of the Great hall from their parents, but little could have prepared them for what they were seeing now. The ceiling gleamed with thousands of candles, and, beyond that, stars, adorning the night sky like a necklace of fire. The ceiling was enchanted to look like the sky above it, and Albus found it hard to believe that there was any ceiling there at all. Silk hangings hung up on the wall behind the staff table. He saw Hagrid, who winked merrily at him, and Albus saw Professor Longbottom beside him. At the centre of the staff table was an empty seat, presumably for the Headmistress.

They lined up between the centre tables. Then a tattered old hat, which, until then, had been slumping placidly on the stool, opened its mouth (a tear at the brim) and began to sing. Albus, who had heard this story many times from James, his father and most his other wizarding family, didn't flinch, but many of the muggle-born girls screamed. These were the words it sang:

"Hufflepuff, Ravenclaws, Gryffindor, Slytherin,

Are all the best of friends.

All the ancient rivalry

Has at last come to an end.

"Hufflepuffs are loyal, fierce,

With unexpected force,

And happy, smiling, just and true-

They'd never lead a friend off course.

"Ravenclaws are clever, witty,

With a ready mind.

Not know-it-all, but knowledgeable,

And always right you'll find.

"Slytherins are ambitious, competitive,

With many achievements to toll.

They will go through toil and turmoil

To achieve their goal.

"Gryffindors are brave and fearless,

Ready for the stretch.

They will fight with sword for friends

And work to be the best.

"Though after this you're all divided,

Your always one and all.

Let the sorting ceremony begin,

And this year start on a roll!"

Everybody cheered. Professor McGonagall began to call out names.

With a swagger, Isaac Adder became a Slytherin, and Imogen Acreet a Ravenclaw. Albus couldn't keep his eyes off Imogen. Her long glossy black hair was in an elegant plait. Her brown eyes sparkled in the candle light. Rose saw Albus looking and snorted. Albus snapped out of his trance immediately and gave her a playful shove.

Name after name was called. Scorpius Malfoy also became a Slytherin. Albus wriggled uncomfortably. Scorpius was the son of his father's arch nemesis.

After what felt like hours, "Potter, Albus," was called. He squeezed Rose's hand, and nervously walked up to the hat. James gave him a thumbs up. Hagrid gave him a comforting smile. He sat awkwardly on the low stall and reached for the hat McGonagall was passing him. One last glimpse of everyone staring before the hat slid over his eyes and blocked them from view.

"Hello!"

Albus jolted. Although he had known the hat could do this, he hadn't expected the voice to be this clear. "Hello," he thought. "My father told me that I would be a good Slytherin. Is this true?" He had been desperate to ask the hat this since his father had told him this that morning. It wasn't true; it couldn't be true- could it?

The hat chuckled. "That a boy, straight to the point. Well, you _would,_" (Albus flinched) "but there are so many other aspects to your personality. You could be in Gryffindor- or Hufflepuff- or Ravenclaw. Good mind, very bright, but you have a soft spot too. You will pass all your exams, and go into them without fear. Also, when possible, you will help your friends pass too! You will face danger to protect your friends, and avoid death wisely. You know when to face your fears, and when to go in for a friend- or an enemy."

"So which one will it be?" thought Albus.

"Shall I surprise you?"

"Surprise me."

"Alright then."

Albus held his breath. That second lasted a million moments.

"SLYTHERIN!"

Albus fell off his stool, but he didn't stop at the floor. He kept on falling down, down, down and when he finally dared to move his hand, it was to rub a painful throbbing lump on his forehead. He opened his eyes. He was in an immaculate room that was crisp and clean and which, judging by his father's description, was surely the Hospital wing. His pyjamas had a thin green ribbon on the cuffs and collar. He sighed. It hadn't all been a nightmare. It was definitely green; definitely Slytherin.

His legs felt heavy, like there was someone sitting on them. Albus cried out. There _was_ someone sitting on them. He tried frantically to hide his green pyjamas from Rose. She laid a calm hand on his panicked one.

"It's Ok, and no use. Everyone knows. It must have given you quite a shock." She smiled. "I'm in Ravenclaw. I've written owls to our parents. They're fine with it."

"How long have I been in here?" asked Albus who, now reassured, was thinking about the time it takes to send an owl.

"Three days." Albus' eyes widened. "You hit you head quite hard on that floor. James is worried, of course, but he's sort of pretending that you're not his brother." She quickly changed the subject as Albus looked as if he was about to burst into tears. "Hey, I bought you a present to cheer you up." She pulled out a rat from her satchel. "She's called Firebolt. I'm really sorry that Crookshanks ate Nimbus." Firebolt was chocolate brown with little white paws and a white tummy.

A nurse came along. She was as crisp and clean as the dormitory, and frowning. "What's this, animals in my hospital wing? Out! Out!"

"She's mine," said Albus.

"Oh, hello deary. I see you're awake. Wonderful. Do you want me to send him to your dorm?"

"Um… Ok," shrugged Albus. The nurse waved her wand and Firebolt disappeared. "Now you're awake, I just need to perform a simple charm to make your head stop hurting, Ok?" Albus disliked the way she was babying him, but the charm did make his head feel much better. "You'll be here for a few more days, my boy. That's a nasty head injury you've got there." She turned to Rose. "You've got five more minutes." She turned and walked down the sunlit corridor.

Rose sniffed angrily at her. Albus decided to change the subject. "How are classes going?"

"Oh, great! I forgot to tell you. I brought you catch up work if you want something to keep you busy."

Albus, who had been preparing to be very bored indeed, welcomed this prospect and accepted a pile of books eagerly. "I asked Professor Edmund, our charms teacher, to summon them from your case for you. He seemed nice about it. The potions teacher, Professor Slughorn, seems a bit offended. He's head of Slytherin, you know."

Albus spent the next few days doing his catch up work, reading and re-reading his textbooks so many times that he swore he knew them off by heart, having regular meals of toast and peanut butter, and getting daily visits from Rose. On his last day, Rose brought him a letter from his parents. "Scorpius from the Slytherin table gave it to me. He doesn't seem too bad, actually. He was very polite."

Albus opened his envelope later when Rose had gone back to class. As was the habit of his parents, they had sent him a piece of parchment with two smaller envelopes stuck to it. He opened the first one from his mum.

Hello Albus,

How are you? Rose told us that you took a nasty bump to the head. I hope you're Ok.

I know you're unhappy with your house, but Dad and I really don't mind! You're still our little boy and your time at Hogwarts is so limited. I know it doesn't feel like it at the moment, but your years will go by in a flash so enjoy it while you still can!

Dad and I miss you so much.

Mum xxx

P.S Lily sent you a letter on the back.

Albus turned the big piece of parchment over to discover a scribbled note from Lily.

Hi,

Mum and Dad won't tell me what house you're in, so I think it's probably Slytherin. Some of our frogspawn has hatched! Uncle George came round and he told me to call my favourite one Fred. I asked Daddy if it was named after our cousin, but he said it was probably someone else. I have no idea what he's on about, do you?

L xxx

P.S Uncle George says he'll want a Hogwarts toilet seat. I don't know what that means either.

Albus smiled. Lily had never heard any of their Dad's stories. Even though, people often underestimated her sharp intellect. No-one expected a girl of eight to work things like that out. Finally, he opened the letter from his Dad.

Hi Al,

You know what; I'm not even going to mention it. All I'm going to say is that it must have been a very happy day for Slytherin.

I hope you're feeling better, and keeping up with your school work. You may see me soon, for I am coming to do a talk. I miss you loads.

Oh, and Al? Make friends with Scorpius for me. I'm kind of getting tired of this feud with his father.

Dad x

Just then, the Nurse (who he now knew was called Madam Oliver) came to do one of his hourly check-ups. "Your temperatures down, and that bruise has gone right down. You're free to go." She waved her wand and a fresh set of robes appeared on the bed. Albus stood up (his legs felt a bit weak from five days in bed), and changed behind the curtain that Madam Oliver provided.

He went through what felt like hundreds of stone passages, stopping several times to ask for directions. "Left, right, right, forward, down the stairs, left, left, through the doors, down the corridor," Albus muttered to himself as he sped down the corridor and straight into another first year.

"Watch where you're going, Potter. Yeah, I know you're name, and that you're ashamed to be in Slytherin, and let me tell you that I'm ashamed to be in the same house as you too. So watch it, Ok?" The brown haired boy stalked off without waiting for an answer. Albus continued towards the common room, hoping that he would not have to see too much of this arrogant boy.

He stared at the brick wall that hid his common room. Looking at the blank wall, he realised that his mind was just as blank of the password. He began to guess wildly. "Parsletongue? Ambition? Emerald?" The brick wall dissolved into nothingness. Albus took a deep breath and stepped inside.


End file.
